Betsey Johnson Works Out with Her Girls

Backstage before her Fall 2013 New York Fashion Week show, Betsey Johnson is running around like a fairy you can't catch. Her devoted publicists attempt to keep her in one place to do some last minute interviews, but the energized 70-year-old is bouncing around in short shorts and leggings throwing colorful confetti at anyone who crosses her path—many of whom are her dear friends, adorable granddaughters, or daughter, Lulu.

It's a total party before the show: Hot pink balloons hang in clusters above the clothing racks, and motivational posters are scattered throughout ("Love to my beautiful models, thank you, XOX Betsey" one reads). There's a DJ spinning top 40 hits in one corner and Melissa Ben-Ishay of Baked by Melissa handing out a trio of limited-edition pink cupcakes in another.

There's even special Betsey Johnson branded champagne, which we later learn will be included as props during the presentation—the models used them as weights.

When we finally pinned Johnson down, she was getting a wig put on for the catwalk, which she will be participating in. "Whoa! I feel like I got a facelift," she says as the hairstylist pulls back her Barbie-blond locks.

The theme of Johnson's comeback show was workout wear. The designer choreographed a fitness routine complete with crunches, jogging and the use of props (like stretch bands and boxing gloves). She performed in it with her models on the runway.

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"I wanted to exercise, and I don't do anything," she says. "I don't need much but I was very unfit, so for my reality show I met this trainer guy…I mean it happened over months…I made a video that will be able to be downloaded when the show debuts in April."

She opens up about why she almost didn't present this season. "When I was working on my aerobic wear, which I really wanted to do, we didn't think it could be done in time," she explains. "But I said, 'It can be done in time!' And I thought, 'Well, that's what the show concept will be: All the girls doing aerobics.'"

Is she ecstatic to be back in the tents? Totally. "I realized I was miserable not showing," she says, her voice filled with emotion, eyes wide like a cartoon doll. "Today I found out that so many people were so happy. I didn't know anybody felt bad until I went to my lecture at the 92Y. When I said, 'No, I'm not showing,' the audience was like 'Ohhh.'"

So she got to work and proved, once again, that no one puts Betsey in a corner by debuting an on-brand, flamboyant collection complete with neon hues and leopard prints. "The dresses are cool and pretty, and the aerobic wear works," she notes. "It's fun, bright, and stylish. It's night and day. We have the uptown ladies and then we have the gym girls. Read the program—it's hysterical—there is Miss Park Avenue in the dresses and then the aerobic girls are like Barbell Betty [Laughs]."